Why You Might Be Feeling Your Oats: They’re Probably Not Gluten-Free!
By Bridget
As most Celiacs know, oats are a questionable food item due to cross-contamination. But many may not know that the risk is deeper seeded than the process plant cross-contamination risk. Years ago, I was told by my doctor that steel cut oats were safe because they were less processed than the old-fashioned version, but that is not true. While I initially believed it was due to amount of processing (believing that steel cut were closer to their whole form), the oats could actually be contaminated due to the ground in which they’re grown, not just the plant where they’re processed!
Many farmers rotate their crops, growing wheat or barley one season and oats the next in the same field to keep the soil healthy and filled with a variety of good nutrients. While completely unintentional, the soil could actually still contain various kernels of wheat that would contaminate the oats.
Another risk of field cross contamination is in the time of actual harvesting. Many farmers grow a variety of crops, growing oats in a field directly adjacent to the wheat or barley field. Apart from unpredictable weather conditions that could blow wheat kernels into the oat field, when farmers harvest their crops the many machines could unintentionally blow kernels into the oat fields as well.
Lastly, trucks that transport oats to processing plants carry loads of other crops as well. This can easily lead to cross contamination among the different grains being transported – all before even getting to the processing plant!
In all, it is important to know where your food is coming from. Though there could be very minimal cross contamination, many people suffering from Celiac disease have to be incredibly cautious and can’t take the risk of even a trace amount of gluten. It is important that you consider the risks and benefits of consuming oats. If your sensitivity isn’t so pronounced, perhaps consuming oats is still a go. But if you’re the type that can’t even use topical products with gluten, reconsider allowing any oats in your gluten-free foods!
While oats do carry a risk of cross-contamination in the food chain there are now several manufacturers who specifically grow, harvest, transport and mill whole grain oats for the gluten-free consumer. Your article neglected to mention this. Oats can be a healthy whole grain for all but about 1% of celiacs. A responsible manufacturer will identify the source of their oats on the package labels. Where the consumer should use caution is in restaurant and bakery retail establishments since they are now producing gluten-free products in an environment that is more likely to be cross-contaminated than an oat field. Since labeling laws are different for manufacturers, I would recommend looking for the Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG) seal of approval on all packaged products.
Also, please keep in mind that 10% of celiacs cannot digest any kind of oats, gluten free or not. My healing was delayed for years before I realized my body had the same reaction to oats as it did to wheat. There is no test your doctor can order to check for additional oat sensitivity, you just have to go by how you feel and whether or not you are healing (as evidence by immune reactor blood tests and endoscopy).
Please allow me to respond from an industry perspective. The first call to action is to go organic. There are measures in place to trace the product from seed to store shelf. Mostly likely, you’re already doing this but take a peek at the back of the packaging and look for a logo from one of the larger certified organic auditors. While you there – see if the package indicates that the manufacturer has been certified GF. The industry is responding to our requirements to be GF from field gate all the way through.
At Edison Grainery, we send every load of our Oats; Steel Cut, Regular Rolled and Oat Flakes out to an independent lab for testing. We only carry oats that are <10 ppms. The government’s standard is <20 ppm. As a Celiac, it was important to me to go the extra mile and make the findings clear on the packaging.
The truck transporting finished goods is where it can get a bit dicey. But as awareness and financial impact increases we’ll soon has companies specializing is delivering GF goods.
I discovered gluten free rolled oats near the end of my chemo treatments for colon cancer. I must say besides being a comfort food, they helped to offset the constipation that I used to get during treatment, such that I no longer needed to take anti constipation meds during chemo. Way easier on the body too!
Some kernels of wheat might blow across the road and get into the oat field? Yes, well, you might get hit by an asteroid, too. Let’s focus on real risks: many times I’ve seen the statistic that up to 40% of celiacs also react to soy vs. <10% for oats, so how about educating people that soy can cause the same range if symptoms as gluten? And that probably 90% of soy is GMO? And that there are links between soy and disruptions of the endocrine system?
For the past year I’ve been eating certified GF oat products from Bob’s Red Mill. They’ve been a great addition to my diet and the GF oat flour makes my cookies taste great. This article does a poor job differentiating between certified GF oats and regular oats. I’ve had no GI issues as a result of eating oats.